Apple's environmental credentials took center stage at the iPhone 15 event, thanks to a lengthy and somewhat laugh-out-loud skit (making an unfunny video with Octavia Spencer is something of an achievement in itself , but I guess that's what happens when you commission a sketch during a writing competition. strike).
A new article says the company's actions and commitments put it far ahead of its major competitors, but the elephant in the room is the annual product cycle for the iPhone …
CNET admits that Apple is far ahead of its main competitor Samsung.
For its part, Apple has committed to decarbonizing its supply chain by 2030. The company says 300 suppliers have already committed to clean energy, a number that has been growing steadily over the years. Apple also actively encourages other companies to participate in its Clean Energy for Suppliers program, which aims to provide 100% renewable electricity to all suppliers […]
In comparison, Samsung has announced its goal of achieving carbon neutral neutrality and 100% renewable energy by 2050. But the South Korean company did not extend this commitment to its supply chain, which is part of Scope 3 emissions as defined by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol.
“Samsung talks a lot about sustainability, but the reality is that Samsung's smartphone manufacturing process is heavily based on fossil fuels, including coal” Greenpeace reported this to CNET just after the Samsung Unpacked promotional event in July. “While Samsung has achieved 100% renewable energy in the US, China and Europe, the vast majority of the company's manufacturing facilities are located in South Korea, where Samsung has made little progress in its clean energy transition.” #8221; […]
Chinese competitors Huawei and Xiaomi provide virtually no information about the environmental costs of creating their smartphones. Google started doing this only recently, but its Pixel 7 Pro has higher lifecycle carbon emissions than Apple.
But Greenpeace claims that for now Apple is talking about sustainable development of suppliers. this is exactly the case.
“It is important to remember that none of Apple's largest suppliers have achieved 100% renewable energy in their operations” ; said Greenpeace East Asia campaigner Xueying Wu.
“Suppliers such as Foxconn and Samsung Electronics are too slow to embrace renewable energy […] Renewable energy utilization rates in some key suppliers such as GoerTek, Foxconn, TSMC, etc. are below 11%.
If you look at the total lifetime carbon emissions of an iPhone, about 80% of it comes from the manufacturing period. Apple itself says that in the case of the iPhone 14 Pro, production accounts for 81% of the total carbon dioxide emissions weighing 65 kg.
This, according to CNET's Sarina Dayaram, is exactly what Apple's green approach is all about. Credentials drop. While production may be cleaner than ever before, the iPhone maker is aggressively encouraging consumers to continually buy new models.
With each new iPhone release, tens of millions of people people around the world tend to upgrade even when the changes are relatively minor […]
If Apple really prioritized the environment, it could encourage longer use of devices and consider increasing the time between major releases .
